Middle Fork of Beaver Creek, April 21, 2024
 

TCT friends and fellow paddlers,
Please join us on Sunday, April 21st for a scenic 9+ mile trip on the Middle Fork of Little Beaver Creek. This gem of a run features a heron rookery; Lusk’s Lock, part of the historic Sandy and Beaver Canal; beautiful stands of hemlocks; and many short class 1 and 1+ rapids along an often narrow and intimate stream.

It is still April, so paddlers are advised to take cold water precautions.

My river level guidelines on the U.S. Geological Survey gage at Grimm’s Bridge are 3.8 feet for just enough water for a pleasant trip and over 5.8 feet for a little too much water for a safe trip. However, since the gage is so far downriver of where we will be paddling, it may be possible to run the trip when the gage is a little below 3.8 or slightly above 5.8.

Hope to see a nice turnout on the 21st. Please post here or on the club Facebook page if you plan to attend or text or call me on 234-575-three six five zero.
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Middle Fork of Little Beaver Creek - Elkton to Beaver Creek State Park
Trip Leader – JP Tolson
Date – Sunday, April 21st
Meeting Time and Place – 10:30 A.M. at the put in (see below)
Lunch – Yes, somewhere along the creek
Distance – 9+ miles
Rapids – Many short class 1 and class 1+ rapids
Precautions – Cold water precautions advised: dry suit, wet suit, or change of clothes in a dry bag.

Put In – Middle Fork Canoe and Kayak Access adjacent to Elkton Community Park (river left)
Address – 42557 Middle Beaver Rd, Lisbon, OH 44432
Coordinates – 40.76177° N, 80.69615° W
Parking – for approximately 12-15 vehicles
Restroom – Port-a-potty in the parking lot

Take Out – Beaver Creek State Park immediately downstream of the Echo Dell Road bridge across the creek (river right)
Park Address – 12021 Echo Dell Rd, East Liverpool, OH 43920
Coordinates – 40.72747° N, 80.61132° W
Parking – for approximately 30-35 vehicles in the lot
Restroom – at the parking lot

Water Level Guidelines (U.S. Geological Survey gage at Grimm’s Bridge)
Minimum – 3.8
Maximum – 5.8

Jessica and myself will be there.
Really looking forward to this paddle
Been several years since I paddled this section

I expect to see you there. A great paddle that we don't get to do often enough. I have your pad in the truck.

On 4/16 ODNR announced a new nature preserve along Little Beaver!

Trip Update – it’s a go!
 

The water level appears to be holding pretty well and dropping only gradually–0.01 to 0.02 inches per hour–in the past several hours on Saturday morning. As of noon it was 4.41 ft. on the gage at Grimm’s Bridge. I also visited the put in this morning and it looks like we will have enough water for tomorrow’s trip. There may be a few clunks and scrapes at a few places along the way, but I don’t foresee any long walks:biggrin:. So the trip is a go. Looking forward to a nice run with the club on the Middle Fork of Beaver Creek on Sunday and meeting some new paddlers.

Im planning on being there see everyone tomorrow

It was another great day on the river!
 

Eight paddlers in six kayaks and two canoes enjoyed a nine-mile run on the Middle Fork of Beaver Creek between Elkton and Beaver Creek State Park on a cool and cloudy day with air temperatures in the low 50s at best and a slight breeze at times. The water level held up really well over the past several days, dropping only 0.01 to 0.02 inches per hour on the day prior to the trip. The gauge reading at Grimm's bridge was 4.25 feet when we put in. We had about two to three inches of water, though it was bony in a few spots.

This section is more closed in by the hillsides than the lower section of Beaver Creek, giving the creek an intimate feel. Hemlocks graced many parts of the creekscape, and literally thousands of white trilliums were in bloom all along the water trail, much to the delight of paddlers. It was a sight to behold and something to consider when timing another trip along this section in future years.

Happily we experienced no carnage, including the two areas where the current flows into trees that are down in the creek bed. This run was a personal first descent for four paddlers. Paddlers were Scott Freese, Stan Shiderly, Eric Berger, Mark Vallecorsa, Fred Romeo, Mike and Jessica Danko, and John Paul Tolson (not pictured). Once again, it was another great day on the river!

I am delighted to say, that this was my third time out already this season, each time being a new-to-me section or stream. We had some new folks join us yesterday, and it turned out to be another enjoyable trip. Kudos to JP for what was one of the most well written pre-trip descriptions, detailing stream and safety info, as well as a great pre-trip safety briefing before we shuttled. I might note, that as members have acquired more of the waterproof walkie-talkies, we were able to equip each paddler with a radio yesterday; and radio silence was never broken. However, as past carnage has taught us, they are a great tool to have. Thanks to JP, and all who turned-out (safety in numbers) for another great trip.

Great Trip
 

Big thanks goes to JP. He put time and effort into leading a great trip on the Middle Fork of Beaver Creek.
My last time on this section was 2011 with Ron Elles, so thank you JP for getting me back on this section.
It was Jessica's first trip on this section.